Should You Go Back to Your Maiden Name after Divorce?

 Posted on June 17, 2014 in Divorce

According to a study that spanned 35 years and was published in Social Behavior and Personality, just under 25 percent of women who married in the 1990’s kept their maiden name. In the 2000’s, this number leveled off at around 18 percent. More women in the Northeast (20 percent) keep their maiden names than women in the Midwest (4 percent).

When going through a divorce, women are given the option of keeping their married last name or going back to their maiden name. For women who are undecided at the time of the divorce, it’s important to make sure that it is clearly spelled out in the final divorce decree that they may do so in the future. Otherwise, it will be necessary to go back to court in order to have the divorce decree amended.

There are several things to consider when deciding which last name to use after a divorce. If there are children from the marriage, some women make the decision to keep their married name in order to still share the same last name with their kids.

Another thing to consider is your profession. If you are already well-established in your career with your married last name, people may not recognize who you are if you begin using your maiden name.

It’s also important that just because your name has been changed legally per the divorce decree, there are still agencies and institutions you must contact to let them know your name has been changed. Two of the most important agencies to contact are the Social Security Administration, for a new Social Security card, and the Department of Motor Vehicles, for a new driver’s license and car registration.

• Banks;
• Utility companies;
• Credit card and other debt holders;
• Insurance companies;
• Voter registration;
• State revenue department;
• Human resource department/employer;
• Schools;
• Any other agencies such as the Veterans Administration, State Welfare office, etc.